Booing and attendence

[Bluez]

Attendance I can understand, we are at the tail end of one of the worst recessions ever.

Booing I can never understand.

[eastlandsblue]

Walmai,
I don't agree that the FA Cup is in its death throes but will concede that it is severely devalued from its previous high place.
When I was kid, the FA Cup was as important as the League. It was rich in the culture and romanticism of football. Great stories and legends abounded and were handed down as folklore.
It was a day that the World stopped and Manchester City Centre was full of shopping women and little kids, kicked out of the house by husbands who didn't want to be distracted from the pageant and celebration that cup final day was.

Much of football these days is too much media hype and insufficient substance.

I can relate to this, it didnt matter who was in the final, but you would still look forward to the final, and watch all the build up, and have a little flutter on the out come.

[john@staustell]

There are a few factors coming into play here, and no reason why we should suddenly think we haven't got any fans anymore every time we have a home cup match (which is what happens):

1) General FA cup attendances (Bolton, 13000 - uh)
2) Recession - spoken about but not taken seriously - unless you're a victim. Especially seeing beer has just gone up another 20-30p a pint!
3) Season ticket holders cash - throughout time there is a serious history of season-ticket holders having paid for their season (many by borrowing) and not having the cash to pay for the more unattractive cup games - No-one who goes to all games needs feel offended, but just look around you, going back years, and you'll see many STs are missing.
4) Season-ticket holders who have the cash cant be arsed 'to watch THAT', quoting above. This is one I can never understand as I do, would - and did - watch City whenever I could, however shite we were, travelling a 600-mile round trip. When I had the means. If anyone needs feel guilty it's this lot, BUT City fans are no different to others in this respect.
5) Big matches in the other cup draining the finances, and 2 games a week at the moment - not many go to a league match without spending money on travel, food and beer etc. It all adds up.

Sure soon we'll have enough glory-hunters and tourist to fill these gaps, like SCUM, but Chelski haven't managed it yet. And then we'll have numerous threads saying they can all fuck off and leave us 'loyals'.

[bobby brows]

i always find it entertainging when people preach that the paying supporter should not boo! If you bought something from Argos and it was damaged would you just put up with it to save the repuation of Argo's owners? The belief that the owner's would sell on the basis of supporters booing at one game is laughable! One, they'll never get their money back. Two, if they were to sell because of the booing of the home team they'd have sold a long time ago!

As the club has no official customer service department or complaints line booing an unacceptabel performance is the only way to communicate that what their offering us is not good enough! Personally next time i saw Mancini knocking around the print works i'm liable to ask for my fuckin money back for the last 4 games!

[lets all have a disco]

Everyone is skint.

If i wasnt a points whore and signed up to cup direct i would have prolly given that shit a miss,then again im mental so would have gone.

BUT............

If people want to stay at home.Fuck it thats their choice what pisses me off is when we start getting further in the cup the woodworkers come out and demand tickets.

As for booing,thats your choice also wether it helps or not is a different matter.

Thanks for listening.

[walmai]

Walmai,
I don't agree that the FA Cup is in its death throes but will concede that it is severely devalued from its previous high place.
When I was kid, the FA Cup was as important as the League. It was rich in the culture and romanticism of football. Great stories and legends abounded and were handed down as folklore.
It was a day that the World stopped and Manchester City Centre was full of shopping women and little kids, kicked out of the house by husbands who didn't want to be distracted from the pageant and celebration that cup final day was.

Much of football these days is too much media hype and insufficient substance.

When I was a kid, the same applied. For weeks beforehand, in the playground, we'd adopt a favourite of the two teams contesting the final, and play football accordingly.

Even up to 5 years ago, it would be a surprise for WHU to fail to sell out its ground if a London derby were taking place, irrespective of the round we'd reached in the competition. And yet we had 25k for the visit of Arsenal.

And, from our perspective, we've still got a decent fan base on which to rely. The Cup is in trouble, imho, because teams like Reading, Bolton and Wigan - to name those coming into my head straight away - have followings that just don't seem bothered by the competition. Reading's ground was barely half full this weekend. Wigan in an earlier round surely set new records.

And one of the obvious reasons for me is that there are so many of the ties on the box. I went to Arsenal (and wouldn't deliberately miss any game against them personally), but, if it had been West Ham at Bolton this weekend, I'd have saved on time and money and watched it from my living room.

In conclusion, some teams' fans still have that core support. Others have very little indeed for the cup.

Can anyone imagine what kind of crowd would turn out for a Bolton - Reading semi-final? 40,000 tops?

[Mase]

To be fair, £60+ for two heads to go and watch that - which will be a day's wages for a section of our support - plus all the travel bollocks... or free at home. There's no actual obligation to go and watch your team - the supporters don't owe them, it is the other way round.
Also, the sheikh questioning the acquisition? for. fuck's. sake. as absurd an inference as you'll ever see. get fucking real.

Can also add that they'll be wanting hundreds of pounds off fans soon for season tickets as well. That's probably the main reason I didn't go.

[lets all have a disco]

The FA cup as a competition is in its death-throes, it seems to me, and I am not singling out your crowd yesterday (as much as its a perfect example).

We only got 25 or so thou for a 3rd round match against Arsenal. All the same explanations arose - whether they're justified or not - concerning the cost of another ticket, the travel etc, but in all my years at West Ham, I've not been to another game against Arsenal in a ground only 60-65% full. But people have much less disposable cash this season and so select their games carefully. I've been to one away and two cup matches this season with maybe two more aways to come (on top of a ST). But the attendance at each match is slightly down - or worse - than its equivalent from last year.

Special mention is however necessary for Bolton. The emptiness of their stadium made we wonder how that club ever breaks even.

I'd like to think that, by the time of the 5th round, the home end in our stadium would be at least 90% full.
I also have to say that I am surprised that you got as few in as you did.
And booing a draw? Odd.

For a lot of folk it was the manner in which the draw came about.

Look at Villa's draw they fought and came back from the dead i bet they were celebrating at the end.

As i mentioned it is their choice i dont think it helps though,i wanted to boo Stevie Wonder because he didnt do part time lover but then i thought the other 95% was amazing.

[Nickyboy]

I'm in cup direct and didn't have a choice (and i'm trying to get my points up).

Where i sit is not the loudest, but there is a 'hard core' who try to sing all through the match. A number of these were missing on Sat and only me and the guy next to me with a few others were really singing.

i didn't boo, i never do, but the performance probably deserved it.

What pissed me off was two teenage girls who were sat behind me (not the regular season ticket holders) were booing their heads off at the end.... daytrippers!!

[Nige]

couple of points from me, and yes I was there.

£22 for an adult ticket is too expensive at this stage of the cup.

Steward told me to sit down and be quiet. I wasn't swearing as my son was with me but I was godsmacked. Told him i didn't realise we were in a library and he said "....any more and you're out mate". This I feel may be happening in other areas where either the fans or stewards want to sit in silence and watch the game.

[Nickyboy]

I also saw a steward take a fog horn of a young kid at the front near us....

think his dad said something like "of course mate, you wouldn't want us making any noise or creating an atmosphere"

[Dunne's Half-Time Pint]

I also saw a steward take a fog horn of a young kid at the front near us....

think his dad said something like "of course mate, you wouldn't want us making any noise or creating an atmosphere"

can't say i'd be gutted if i'd have been sat in front of a young kid with a foghorn.

[Dazzacity]

I also saw a steward take a fog horn of a young kid at the front near us....

think his dad said something like "of course mate, you wouldn't want us making any noise or creating an atmosphere"

It really is pathetic.. I was waiting for it to go off again when Delap went to take his throw, but it didn't!! That was why then. I wouldn't have handed it over. The steward prob only pursued it as it was just a kid.

[Mase]

I also saw a steward take a fog horn of a young kid at the front near us....

think his dad said something like "of course mate, you wouldn't want us making any noise or creating an atmosphere"

It really is pathetic.. I was waiting for it to go off again when Delap went to take his throw, but it didn't!! That was why then. I wouldn't have handed it over. The steward prob only pursued it as it was just a kid.

It's funny how neither the police or stewards did anything when the munes lit up!

[Dazzacity]

I also saw a steward take a fog horn of a young kid at the front near us....

think his dad said something like "of course mate, you wouldn't want us making any noise or creating an atmosphere"

It really is pathetic.. I was waiting for it to go off again when Delap went to take his throw, but it didn't!! That was why then. I wouldn't have handed it over. The steward prob only pursued it as it was just a kid.

It's funny how neither the police or stewards did anything when the munes lit up!

I remember when we played PSG. The PSG fans were smoking right in front of the stewards and Police and fook all was done!!

[Nickyboy]

I also saw a steward take a fog horn of a young kid at the front near us....

think his dad said something like "of course mate, you wouldn't want us making any noise or creating an atmosphere"

can't say i'd be gutted if i'd have been sat in front of a young kid with a foghorn.

The lad was in row A and not many people around so wasn't really doing any harm. Granted at a packed out game it could get annoying to those close by

[Beefymcfc]

couple of points from me, and yes I was there.

£22 for an adult ticket is too expensive at this stage of the cup.

Steward told me to sit down and be quiet. I wasn't swearing as my son was with me but I was godsmacked. Told him i didn't realise we were in a library and he said "....any more and you're out mate". This I feel may be happening in other areas where either the fans or stewards want to sit in silence and watch the game.

And well deserved, you lay-about ;-)